European Investment Fund launches €225M Baltic Innovation Fund 3
The European Investment Fund (EIF), together with the national development institutions of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, is launching the Baltic Innovation Fund 3 (BIF 3) with a total value of €225M. The EIF will contribute €75M, and each of the Baltic countries will contribute €50M.
In Estonia, BIF 3 is supported by SmartCap, in Latvia by ALTUM, and in Lithuania by ILTE.
The BIF 3 initiative aims to support both novice and experienced fund managers. The fund is expected to attract up to €700M in investments in Baltic companies at the growth stage. About 70% of the funds will be directed towards growth strategies in the field of direct investment, with the remainder going to late-stage venture capital. BIF 3 plans to support between 8 and 11 funds over five years, with up to 20% of the funds going to climate-related investments. The EIF will act as trustee, overseeing fund selection, due diligence, and management.
The first two funds, BIF 1 and BIF 2, raised more than €1.19B for companies in the region.
SmartCap was established in Tallinn in 2021 as a subsidiary of the Estonian Business and Innovation Agency. SmartCap manages two common closed-end alternative investment funds: SmartCap Venture Capital Fund and SmartCap Green Fund. The CEO of SmartCap is Sille Pettai.
ALTUM is the state development financial institution of Latvia. It provides state support to startups through financial instruments: loans, guarantees, investments in venture capital funds and others.
ILTE is Lithuania's national development bank providing financial services to local businesses, the public sector, agriculture and fisheries. The organization was founded in 2001.
